Chippies sell catfish as 'traditional fish supper'

Chippies sell catfish as 'traditional fish supper'9 minutes agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleDaniel O'DonoghueandWilliam Higgens,North West InvestigationsBBCA type of tropical freshwater catfish found on sale in the north-west of England is usually farmed and imported from South East Asia and is markedly cheaper than codRogue chip shops have been passing off catfish as "traditional fish and chips" to cut down on costs, the BBC has learned.Cases of fish being mis-sold or misdescribed are often hard to detect since any investigations are intelligence-led and rely on expensive DNA testing.A BBC North West investigation found a catfish species, known as pangasius or river cobbler, being sold in the region's chippies without customers being fully aware of what they were buying.The Chartered Trading Standards Institute said that while the mis-selling or misdescription of fish was not a widespread issue it acknowledged "there are still some unscrupulous businesses".To the untrained eye, fish fillets can be hard to tell apartCatfish, which is safe to eat, is generally farmed and imported from South East Asia.It is significantly cheaper, at about £3.40 per kilogram wholesale, than traditional species such as cod and haddock which typically go for £15 per kilogram.The investigation was prompted by the owner of a Liverpool chip shop contacting the BBC to complain about the dishonest practice."This goes on more than you'd think and it's putting people like me at a disadvantage," he said.The BBC analysed dozens of online food reviews in which customers questioned the species of fish that they had bought.Many of them left comments such as "haven't a clue what type of fish it was" and "not cod or haddock, some cheap white fish".The reviews led the BBC to identify 10 businesses, five in Liverpool and five in Manchester, for a sample test. Three of the chip shops that our reporter visited liste...